Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child

So, I had read everything my favorite authors had in print. Needing something to read, I had no choice but to try an author I had not read. Gone Tomorrow, a 2009 Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child was on sale, so I grabbed it. Soon I was inside the head of Jack Reacher, the enigmatic main character of Lee Child's Jack Reacher series and protagonist of the 2012 movie, Jack Reacher, starring Tom Cruise.

Riddick - K

I am now terrified of looking forward to another movie ever again.  Riddick is just one more movie this year that’s been at least slightly disappointing.  That said, Riddick is not a bad movie, it’s just not Pitch Black. 

Mortal Instruments - K

When they first announced Jamie Campbell Bower as Jace in The Mortal Instruments I wondered who was thinking what...this scrawny, blonde kid playing a a lonely, but tough and loyal, boy, I didn't see it.  Lily Collins as Clary, Robert Sheehan as Simon and the rest of the crew, I totally could envision (although I did have doubts - still do - about Kevin Zegers as Alec), but I seriously was thinking that Jamie playing Jace would throw the entire movie for me.  Boy, was I wrong.

Django Unchained - K

            With the combination of great acting in Jamie Foxx and Christopher Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, including Kerry Washington and Samuel L. Jackson, with writer/director Quentin Tarantino how could anything go wrong with Django Unchained?

House of Cards

"The exploits of this compelling anti-hero held my interest"

But wait, let's backup and start with the basics.

Synopsis

House of Cards, a Netflix-produced political drama series, is based on the novel by Michael Dobbs. The show stars Kevin Spacey and boasts five prominent directors rotating on direction duties. Netflix released the entire first season, (13) episodes, in February 2013, a move some see as a nod to recent binge-viewing trends.

After Earth - K

Tell me when Will Smith isn't a – okay, not sure thing – but at least a good bet in a movie?  And then with After Earth, a movie basically made to showcase his kid?  Well, in this case we went in knowing it was a crap shoot.  We were too late for the movie we wanted to see, the latest Fast and Furious installment, and too early for another interesting looking movie, Now You See Me.  I wouldn't say so we were “stuck” with After Earth, since we chose not to wait, but that’s what we went with, for better, for worse.  And it was….well, you’ll see.

Oblivion - K

I wouldn't call myself a Tom Cruise “fan” because I don’t go see just any of his movies.  I would say that when I see his name involved with a movie, I make a pretty safe bet it’s going to be solid, Minority Report, Mission Impossibles, Top Gun, A Few Good Men to name a few.  So when I went to see Oblivion I was going to see a movie that had a fun sci-fi premise and at least one talented actor.  What I didn't expect or count on was less than mediocre acting from the rest of the cast (not quite including Morgan Freeman) and the plot to, not...fall apart, but become ludicrous and cliché at the same time. 

Blue Like Jazz (Book)

     Donald Miller delivers an adventure through topics of humanity and Christian spirituality in encounters primarily based in Portland, Oregon and around Reed College. The tangible essays look at challenging ideals, lessons in maturity and the search for that esoteric “other” through Donald Miller’s journey.

Olympus Has Fallen - K

To be fair, I wasn't horribly interested in seeing Olympus Has Fallen, but we needed a good theatre diversion after having gone through the likes of the new wanna be Die Hard where Bruce Willis (my favorite action actor ever) mailed it in, and the new GI Joe where expectations were not high and still we were rocked (and not in a good way).  So, we wanted a neutral movie. And, neutral is what we got. 

It's A Good Day to Die Hard

I have long been a fan of the Die Hard series. I was even OK with the cartoon version (4) that came out a couple years ago. To be perfectly blunt the latest installment in the Die Hard franchise was a piece of crap. See below if you really want to know how big of a piece of crap it was.